'\" t
.\"     Title: git-credential
.\"    Author: [FIXME: author] [see http://docbook.sf.net/el/author]
.\" Generator: DocBook XSL Stylesheets v1.78.1 <http://docbook.sf.net/>
.\"      Date: 07/27/2015
.\"    Manual: Git Manual
.\"    Source: Git 2.5.0
.\"  Language: English
.\"
.TH "GIT\-CREDENTIAL" "1" "07/27/2015" "Git 2\&.5\&.0" "Git Manual"
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.SH "NAME"
git-credential \- Retrieve and store user credentials
.SH "SYNOPSIS"
.sp
.nf
git credential <fill|approve|reject>
.fi
.sp
.SH "DESCRIPTION"
.sp
Git has an internal interface for storing and retrieving credentials from system\-specific helpers, as well as prompting the user for usernames and passwords\&. The git\-credential command exposes this interface to scripts which may want to retrieve, store, or prompt for credentials in the same manner as Git\&. The design of this scriptable interface models the internal C API; see \m[blue]\fBthe Git credential API\fR\m[]\&\s-2\u[1]\d\s+2 for more background on the concepts\&.
.sp
git\-credential takes an "action" option on the command\-line (one of fill, approve, or reject) and reads a credential description on stdin (see INPUT/OUTPUT FORMAT)\&.
.sp
If the action is fill, git\-credential will attempt to add "username" and "password" attributes to the description by reading config files, by contacting any configured credential helpers, or by prompting the user\&. The username and password attributes of the credential description are then printed to stdout together with the attributes already provided\&.
.sp
If the action is approve, git\-credential will send the description to any configured credential helpers, which may store the credential for later use\&.
.sp
If the action is reject, git\-credential will send the description to any configured credential helpers, which may erase any stored credential matching the description\&.
.sp
If the action is approve or reject, no output should be emitted\&.
.SH "TYPICAL USE OF GIT CREDENTIAL"
.sp
An application using git\-credential will typically use git credential following these steps:
.sp
.RS 4
.ie n \{\
\h'-04' 1.\h'+01'\c
.\}
.el \{\
.sp -1
.IP "  1." 4.2
.\}
Generate a credential description based on the context\&.
.sp
For example, if we want a password for
https://example\&.com/foo\&.git, we might generate the following credential description (don\(cqt forget the blank line at the end; it tells
git credential
that the application finished feeding all the information it has):
.sp
.if n \{\
.RS 4
.\}
.nf
protocol=https
host=example\&.com
path=foo\&.git
.fi
.if n \{\
.RE
.\}
.RE
.sp
.RS 4
.ie n \{\
\h'-04' 2.\h'+01'\c
.\}
.el \{\
.sp -1
.IP "  2." 4.2
.\}
Ask git\-credential to give us a username and password for this description\&. This is done by running
git credential fill, feeding the description from step (1) to its standard input\&. The complete credential description (including the credential per se, i\&.e\&. the login and password) will be produced on standard output, like:
.sp
.if n \{\
.RS 4
.\}
.nf
protocol=https
host=example\&.com
username=bob
password=secr3t
.fi
.if n \{\
.RE
.\}
.sp
In most cases, this means the attributes given in the input will be repeated in the output, but Git may also modify the credential description, for example by removing the
path
attribute when the protocol is HTTP(s) and
credential\&.useHttpPath
is false\&.
.sp
If the
git credential
knew about the password, this step may not have involved the user actually typing this password (the user may have typed a password to unlock the keychain instead, or no user interaction was done if the keychain was already unlocked) before it returned
password=secr3t\&.
.RE
.sp
.RS 4
.ie n \{\
\h'-04' 3.\h'+01'\c
.\}
.el \{\
.sp -1
.IP "  3." 4.2
.\}
Use the credential (e\&.g\&., access the URL with the username and password from step (2)), and see if it\(cqs accepted\&.
.RE
.sp
.RS 4
.ie n \{\
\h'-04' 4.\h'+01'\c
.\}
.el \{\
.sp -1
.IP "  4." 4.2
.\}
Report on the success or failure of the password\&. If the credential allowed the operation to complete successfully, then it can be marked with an "approve" action to tell
git credential
to reuse it in its next invocation\&. If the credential was rejected during the operation, use the "reject" action so that
git credential
will ask for a new password in its next invocation\&. In either case,
git credential
should be fed with the credential description obtained from step (2) (which also contain the ones provided in step (1))\&.
.RE
.SH "INPUT/OUTPUT FORMAT"
.sp
git credential reads and/or writes (depending on the action used) credential information in its standard input/output\&. This information can correspond either to keys for which git credential will obtain the login/password information (e\&.g\&. host, protocol, path), or to the actual credential data to be obtained (login/password)\&.
.sp
The credential is split into a set of named attributes, with one attribute per line\&. Each attribute is specified by a key\-value pair, separated by an = (equals) sign, followed by a newline\&. The key may contain any bytes except =, newline, or NUL\&. The value may contain any bytes except newline or NUL\&. In both cases, all bytes are treated as\-is (i\&.e\&., there is no quoting, and one cannot transmit a value with newline or NUL in it)\&. The list of attributes is terminated by a blank line or end\-of\-file\&. Git understands the following attributes:
.PP
protocol
.RS 4
The protocol over which the credential will be used (e\&.g\&.,
https)\&.
.RE
.PP
host
.RS 4
The remote hostname for a network credential\&.
.RE
.PP
path
.RS 4
The path with which the credential will be used\&. E\&.g\&., for accessing a remote https repository, this will be the repository\(cqs path on the server\&.
.RE
.PP
username
.RS 4
The credential\(cqs username, if we already have one (e\&.g\&., from a URL, from the user, or from a previously run helper)\&.
.RE
.PP
password
.RS 4
The credential\(cqs password, if we are asking it to be stored\&.
.RE
.PP
url
.RS 4
When this special attribute is read by
git credential, the value is parsed as a URL and treated as if its constituent parts were read (e\&.g\&.,
url=https://example\&.com
would behave as if
protocol=https
and
host=example\&.com
had been provided)\&. This can help callers avoid parsing URLs themselves\&. Note that any components which are missing from the URL (e\&.g\&., there is no username in the example above) will be set to empty; if you want to provide a URL and override some attributes, provide the URL attribute first, followed by any overrides\&.
.RE
.SH "NOTES"
.IP " 1." 4
the Git credential API
.RS 4
\%git-htmldocs/technical/api-credentials.html
.RE
